Life was just a waiting game - a few intense, vivid moments with a slew of long, drawn out periods of hermitage and charcoal stains in between.  Dom was living from one Quidditch match to the next, in other words; as usual avoiding the fact that he had other goals to attain in life other than satisfying the ravenous fans of the Falmouth Falcons.  They'd gotten him into a nice little groove with it... two weekends per moon cycle, one where his days of playing were doubled up and the other was a single shot.  There was little else to do but practice dutifully in between matches, though at his age and with his level of experience, practice periods sometimes seemed an extraneous procedure. 

The primary challenge for him these days was in keeping up his momentum.  He had a feeling he was only going through the motions now.  Even the cheering, mind boggling crowds were pretty commonplace for Dominik Wiedman... and he now had very little going on in his personal life that would really drive him to succeed or to want to vanquish the opposing teams anymore.  Dominik wasn't even taking anything out on the bludgers any longer, he was simply apathetic about it all.  He was feeling the marked absence of Dolores, Niobe, and now even Liadan.  His dear friend was so busy with her sudden wedding preparations that she had all but abandoned him to the cruel fate of winding up some overgrown, washed out criminal Beater who'd overstayed his welcome on the league and long since passed his window for marrying and settling down with children.   

Today there was little reprieve from all of that.  It was the Monday night following his double booked weekend playing against the Caerphilly Catapaults and the Appleby Arrows.  He was physically exhausted after two weeks of heavy practicing and the two brutal, back-to-back games - and that was such a familiar and most cherished feeling to be all used up and bloody sore - in the best of all ways, of course.  It was the sort of hurt that reminded you of your body's glorious feats and made right sure that you were still alive and kicking.  He'd holed up in his apartment with a tub of ice cream and a fifth of whiskey in the aftermath and was shuffling around bare chested and in his drab, sinfully comfortable long johns when a bright knock came at his door. 

His dark apartment was lit by a plethora of ambient candles and the aroma of a hastily thrown-together pasta dinner still hung heavy on the air, though it was about 8 o'clock.  A tub of peach bellini sat on the coffee table, a spoon sticking straight out of it, haphazardly covering a slew of charcoal drawings.  The black etches were here and there filled in with patches of brightly coloured chalk pastels, an unusual occurrence for Dominik.

He went to the door nonchalantly, expecting Dazmond.  She had been in better spirits and started dropping by unannounced more and more often the last few months since Christmas.  But he was entirely surprised to be met with a different little Witch.

"Liadan!" he said, clearly thrilled.  Maybe a little too thrilled, as he didn't even make note of the fact that he was not at all dressed appropriately as he opened the door wide to allow her entry.  This was a common enough occurrence to not totally startle her, probably, and they were close enough now where he didn't have to worry about being half dressed every time he answered the door, right?  That logic was doomed to fail him, but as it was he was much too excited at the moment to even remember what he had on.  At least he had showered since this weekend, two days of grime and sweat from the Quidditch Pitch would be entirely unacceptable.  Liadan might get used to seeing him in his underwear, though, if he was lucky.

"Come in, come in," he said, "Before I realize you're only a figment of my imagination.  I was starting to think you'd forgotten your old friend!"  He scourgified his earthen hands with the damp cloth he carried, his thick Beater's paws having been covered in black dust and a plethora of colored chalks, before he opened his arms to offer her a hug in greeting.

Liadan had been so incredibly busy. With her pending nuptials to Oscar, darling wonder lovely Oscar Whitman, Liadan barely had time to think. A hastily thrown together wedding still had to be beautiful. She was already receiving criticism for having such a small event, had heard whispers of offended pureblood families who had not been invited. But Oscar has already been married once, and having a lavish affair just did not seem to fit in with her idea of propriety because of that. So she was doing something small, in the lovely gardens of her ancestral home, and inviting very few people. Her close friends, a few relatives, and the people Oscar wished in attendance- his mother, some of his relatives, perhaps some of his colleages from the Wizengamot. But that was it. Twenty or thirty people, forty at the absolute most. But that was fine by Liadan. She would have her pictures to show off, a nice photo in the Daily Prophet afterward, and then a lifetime to be Mrs. Oscar Whitman and care for him, give him children, and be the little wife she always knew she could be.

Even so, she missed her friends. Dolly, Lotte, and Melly had all been helpful in planning certain aspects. Their opinions meant the world to her. But their meetings now were all related to the wedding... Liadan still had a business to run in the mean time, and the date was only a month away and she was still fussing over getting her dress perfected just in time along with the endless list of details she had to manage before the big day.

She had very nearly forgotten all about Dominik. After a fitting she had been shopping in Diagon and stumbled across a very lovely pocket watch that reminded her of Dominik. She'd been trying very hard to help him get in touch with his genteel nature, and he had come leaps and bounds in his manners (toward her at the very least) since their friendship had started to blossom. She adored him, and felt guilty for neglecting him. Dominik was, after all, like an adorable little puppy who needed lots of love and guidance else he would sulk at you. She did want to be sulked at.

She hoped he was at his apartment and not at the cottage. Dropping in unannounced was somewhat rude, but she felt as though they were close enough friends now for that not to matter. She knocked upon door, and smiled brightly at the happy greeting. "Dominik, darling!" she crowed, allowing him to embrace her- despite his lack of proper dress. She had, of course, called upon him unannounced and late in the evening. She could not expect too much out of him. "I am so glad you are home! I was worried you might be at the cottage." She sniffed the air, and smiled at him. "You've been cooking! I'm proud!" Liadan sailed past him, settling down on the couch, his gift wrapped neatly in brown paper still tucked in her small handbag.

Liadan politely paid no attention to his drawings- not wanting to chance seeing some half naked woman among his art, and patted the seat next to her. "Do come and sit with me, Dominik. I feel like it has been ages since we last spoke! I am very sorry for neglecting you, dear. I have just been so very busy getting everything ready. Did you receive your invitation?" Liadan asked. "I know it is all quite rushed, but I do hope you will be able to attend the wedding. I haven't any family left, not really anyway, and I am hoping for all of my closest friends to come in their place." Naturally her brother did not count as family. He had stopped counting as family more than a decade ago.

Dominik was so happy to have the opportunity to entertain Lia in his home again.  He grinned as she kindly embraced him and proceeded to settle in so naturally on her own.  Along with the attention she paid him, it was quite the treat; he was especially pleased by her direct applauding of his culinary pursuits.  He'd been ravenous and feeling quite indulgent after this weekend of course, so a simple yet delectable pasta dinner had been a worthwhile and timely venture, but it was true he was taking steps to take care of himself.  Now his whole home was made even more alive by her role as an adoring witness to his creative process.  Suddenly, he felt very accomplished and proud of himself! 

Absence did, after all, cause the heart to grow fonder for friends as well, thought Dominik.  He only now noticed quite how starved he was of her affection.

Joining her on the couch, Dominik settled in comfortably, giving his full attention and nodding somewhat pensively as she began discussing the invitation she'd extended to him via owl.  Truly he'd had some unpleasant feelings about her impending nuptials... now, however, he was pulled along by the current dynamic; whichever direction she led him in,  he'd follow behind her amiably.  The privilege of being among her dearest friends, indeed being dear enough to count as a replacement for family, was an admission from Liadan that he would never dare take lightly.  Expressing doubts about her previously divorced fiance, or discomfort with how quickly all of this was taking place would be a terrible offense.  He had to be cautious that he didn't stick his foot in his mouth then, as he was seemingly always apt to do.

Luckily his eagerness to please her outweighed his lack of excitement over bad egg Oscar Whitman, at least for the time being.

"Of course, of course I'll be there," he quickly assured her.  He'd pessimistically assumed he'd try to get out of it, but with those few leading comments of hers she'd already won his allegiance.  She could probably convince him to be in the wedding party with the right kind of smile, not that she should have any desire to trust him not to ruin such delicate ceremonies.  Pleasing Liadan, though, was as addictive as any of his vices, if he was being entirely honest with himself.

"I'm of course grateful and so honoured to be that for you, Liadan," he admitted alongside a heartfelt expression.  "You're the same to our entire family, but if I dare say to me especially; I can't tell you how much our time together means to me.  I hope that you'll still feel comfortable being my friend as a married Witch..., I'd be destroyed if I were ever to lose your company and companionship.  You'll be all grown up so soon, it's bloody tragic is what it is!  You won't go on and forget me when you're with a little one, will you?"  He nudged her knee, meaning to be playful and wanting to bring some levity to their conversation, but perhaps a bit of genuine neediness shined through, for all his earnestness.

Liadan clapped gaily. "Oh how lovely! I am very glad you will be in attendance!" She'd felt obligated to explain her reasoning behind inviting a bachelor to Oscar. Liadan wasn't sure he had quite understood, but had not made a fuss once Liadan explained how close she was to his family. She still remembered Dominik coming to see her when things were going poorly with the farm and her reputation, offering her the key to a Gringott's vault if she needed it. He'd always tried so very, very hard to impress her and Liadan felt her presence in Dominik's life made him far less objectionable. She was also hoping that she might be able to set him up with another of her French relatives and hopefully help him settle down. Dominik desperately needed a wife and children to ground him.

She felt her eyes grow misty as he talked about how much their time together meant, and his worries that when she grew up and got married and had children that she would forget him about him. Liadan clucked her tongue and patted his hand gently. "Dominik, you needn't worry so much about losing my friendship. Oscar knows how much you and your family means to me, and he is not the sort to forbid my having friendships. As long as you and I have been friends, he has no reason to worry that something untoward might happen. I very much adore Oz, and have no intentions of doing anything to put my relationship with him in jeopardy. Even if I were not so genuinely fond of him, I am not getting any younger, and ruining my first engagement would likely prevent my marrying at all in the future. My life is so dreadfully incomplete without a husband or children, I could not imagine doing anything to directly prevent that from happening."

"But no," she added, giving his hand a squeeze, "you've nothing to worry about! You are a very dear friend, and I do not treat my friends so poorly." Liadan gave him a genuine smile and released his hand. "In fact, I even brought you a present to apologize for being so terribly neglectful these last two months."

She reached into the small bag and pulled out the plainly wrapped package. "I was out shopping, and for some reason this made me think of you." Liadan handed him the brown paper package, still smiling. Wrapped in the paper was a pocketwatch. When Liadan had spotted the watch, the design on the front reminded her of Dominik. There was something tough and unsettling about it, but it was also well crafted and beautiful. Dominik had layers like that. He had such a gruff, unkempt exterior- people seeing Dominik the Death Eater, the vicious beater in quidditch- and not realizing that beneath all of that was such a kind hearted, genuine soul. Liadan often wished she could do more to help him with his reputation, but talking too fondly of Dominik to others might raise suspicion that their friendship was not entirely platonic.

Liadan fluffed out her skirt and looked on eagerly, waiting for him to unwrap the gift. "If you absolutely hate it, I can always find something better suited," she told him. Liadan always felt nervous about giving people gifts. She was never sure if her tastes were as impeccable as she expected them to be. Liadan had given Oscar Whitman a puppy for Christmas, after all.

The pat on the hand did not go unnoticed; it was vastly reassuring, even if he doubted that his relationship with her newly wed would be anything but fraught with tensions.  Dominik Wiedman was likely the last bachelor on Earth that any Wizard would want to see communing with his wife.  Or maybe Dominik was just the last Bachelor on Earth, period!

"Oh, you didn't have to...," Dominik trailed off as she handed over his present.  He was touched and it didn't even matter so much whatever was inside.  Just the fact that she was here and had wanted to make up for lost time was more than enough to alleviate a great deal of his anxieties.  He moved his hands over the plain paper, appreciating it before he undid the wrapping.  Inside was a box.  Opening this, Dominik paused.  What; it was perfectly exquisite!  It was still a shock to be worthy of such things, sometimes.  He picked up the pocket watch and turned it over, popped it open.

"Oh Liadan," he said after a moment, smiling.  "Hate it?  Not in a thousand years.  You must know already how fitting this is.  Thank you so much.  I adore it and will always remember you by it!"  He disposed of the wrappings in his ashtray to the side of the couch and reached over to hug her again, his dear little friend!  How he was so loved by her he didn't know, but the watch was a beautiful gesture that told him as much:  he was.

"I wish I'd gotten you something.  Of course I will have done soon, a present for your engagement.  Next time."  It was only proper, after all, but it didn't mean he'd be getting anything for this Oz character... he didn't think the Wizard was suitable for Dolores, and he didn't think he was suitable for Lia, either.  But he could be happy for her.  He certainly didn't wish his own fate on others... it was better to be wed, and wed young.  Traditions existed for a reason.

Dominik draped the golden watch and its solid chain respectfully on the coffee table in front of them, off to the side of his artistic mess. 

"Can I get you anything," he asked.  "Some peach bellini?  A glass of wine?"  He did hope she'd stay a while.  Her visit had gone a long way in showing him how lonely he actually was, holed up in his little apartment making art for no one.

"Of course I had to!" she protested. "What kind of apology would it be if I came empty handed? Besides, I like to give gifts, especially to my dearest friends." She was absolutely giddy watching him slowly inspect the watch, and when he smiled at her she smiled right back. It wasn't often that Liadan got the chance to be joyful, but in Dominik's company she was generally in better spirits. She was just genuinely fond of him- something unusual in the land of pureblood politics. Pureblood politics commanded civility, of course, but there was a difference in shallow friendships based on propriety and genuinely liking someone. Liadan did not genuinely like many people.

She blushed lightly when he hugged her. Liadan still felt awkward with any type of physical affection from a man that did not come from Oscar. "Oh, don't be silly Dominik!" she chided him. "You have no reason to buy me a present! And I do not expect an engagement gift from you. Bridal showers are events for ladies, you're not at all obligated to do that!" But if he sent a gift, Liadan would not refuse it. Dominik had proven to be a very capable gift giver. Her Christmas gift from Domink had been a very pleasant surprise.

"A glass of wine would be quiet lovely," she told him. "But only one! It always goes straight to my head." And an intoxicated Liadan could be quite the handful. She tended to get quite tempestuous and behaved in a manner most unbecoming a pureblood witch- and a pureblood witch engaged to a man like Oscar Whitman could not afford making such a fool of herself in front of man who was not her betrothed.

Liadan fluffed out her skirt a little and wiped a smudge from the toe of her shoe. "If you like, I can be sure to invite a couple of lovely, available witches to the wedding. Or arrange a nice date for you." Of course she had to hint at the fact that Dominik really ought to get ready to settle down soon. Considering his past with Dolores, Liadan was not positive finding him a date was the best of ideas- but she'd rather both have dates to her wedding rather than one or the other end up coming alone... Or worse, both be dateless and go home together. Liadan would not mind if Dolly and Dominik did find themselves together in the end, but there were better ways to orchestrate it than her own wedding.

"I have to admit I am quite excited about the wedding, though I do wish my mother and father were able to see it." Of course, her Mother would probably be against the union considering Oscar's divorced status. But Liadan wasn't going to go around trumpeting that fact. "It will be bittersweet to get married without them, and without much of my family able to attend. Oh, some of the French relatives have been invited, but I am not particularly close with most of my family. After father found himself, well, in legal difficulties and then after he passed on things just changed." Liadan sighed a little, and tucked a bit of hair behind her ear. "But I won't let that ruin my day. I only get one wedding, after all, and even though it is a tad short notice I have faith it will come together in the end. You should see my dress, Dominik. It is absolutely perfect!"

Dominik smiled sinfully to himself in his moment of beaten / redeemed glory, sliding a bit further into his sophisticated, languid posturing.  Settled in so on his leather sofa, and content with Lia's cordiality, he had only to stretch just so, wrapping his bare toes in a dexterous movement around the wand set out on the coffee table and brought it into reach.  He used this to quickly conjure up the bottle of sparkling Balfour Brut Rose and two wine flutes from the kitchens.  His shameless heel was smudged blue, purple, black, and the ball of his foot lined in acid green dust during these efforts.

He transferred wine into both their flutes and floated them less than carefully over - grasping his own from mid-air he grinned and held it aloft.  "Cheers," he offered.  "To Madam Whit- Whitman.  Blimey, that sounds weird.  Like talking about my cousin's mum, isn't it.  You're nearly my relative now, Lia, we'll be almost legitimately related soon enough."  He shook his head weird-like, as if the notion had only just occurred to him, and he took a draw from his drink to wash away the odd feeling that rose in him.

"They'll be there, though, your family.  In some odd way, smiling down on you.  I know they'd be dead proud of you, Lia.  Er - " Could've chosen better words, mate, "You've always been the best -" he hesitated, not in doubt but as if picking from an assortment of possibilities - "best of all possible daughters," he decided, matter of factly.  "And now, what.  You're beautifully becoming what they'd always wanted you to become."  He paused, frowning deep in thought.

"I can't believe I'm saying this but yeah, yeah set me up for something or other, would you?  It's not like I'm so terribly busy I can't take a chance on something perhaps equally as brilliant as what I have already."  He gestured vaguely around himself with ennui, wineglass in hand - at the peach bellini, at the aimless and shapeless drawings devoid of human figures, at the messy drab flat in general.  What was he doing with himself anyways?  He knew that this last, auxiliary season of Quidditch came with a definite expiration date which every day drew closer near, coinciding roughly with not his 30th but now his bloody thirty-first birthday, yet here he was wiling away the days like he was Peter Pan or some kind of wangsty vampire, caught in a long drawn out debate with Father Time, Master of the Universe. 

"It's time to explore new possibilities," he declared.  "Cause I've been in this waiting and seeing business a longish time and let's face it, Liadan, the trying's terrible.  All this stinking trout tickling." 

He laughed stupidly at this 'trout tickling' euphemism and the images it brought to mind, must've been conjured up from some strange memory recess of unwanted muggle acculturation, he hardly knew where he'd plucked it from.  Wistfully he looked over at her, sighing away his amusement. 

"It's just not working for me love.  I ought to try and figure out how to find a bride that's more like you, to be honest.  What you've been telling me for years, find something right and proper, yeah?  But now if I'm ready I've got to go attract it, haven't I.  So... what is it exactly that Oscar does that draws you in, if I could be so bold as to ask?  Which I am and I did.  You know, other than being successful and proper and well liked and all that."  Because if he was being brutal with himself as he all too often was, Dominik really wasn't all that.